Cal-Mum Newsletter
February 2022
February 2022
Please join us in congratulating the Cal-Mum High School Class of 2022 Top Ten
From Dr. Rebekah Chenaille, Cal-Mum Middle & High School Principal
"Here at Caledonia-Mumford High School, the launch of the second semester is a big deal for the senior. The second semester starts the countdown to senior trip, senior banquet, prom, and GRADUATION!
This final semester of high school for The Class of 2022 also launches the final calculation of GPAs and the release of a most impressive list... The Class of 2022 Top Ten. The Class of 2022 is filled with young people who’ve maximized their time here at Cal-Mum. Those who find their name listed in the Top Ten are a group of young people who participated to their fullest potential and maintained the highest levels of academic achievement— Impressive. Congratulations Raiders!"
The full color print edition of The Cal-Mum Chronicle will be mailed to every home in the school district in June and will highlight the Caledonia-Mumford High School Class of 2022, including biographies of the Top Ten and their future plans.
Class of 2022 Valedictorian Andy Lin
Class of 2022 Salutatorian Taylor Mills
Class of 2022 Top Ten - Bernard Bazzett
Class of 2022 Top Ten - Jacob Cappotelli
Class of 2022 Top Ten - Camden Reed
Class of 2022 Top Ten - Sawyer Richardson
Class of 2022 Top Ten - Halie VanDyne
Class of 2021 Top Ten - Alexzandra Whiteman
Class of 2022 Top Ten - Zachary Kuhn
Class of 2022 Top Ten - Lydia Johnston
Welcome to Mr. Tim McArdle - Cal-Mum Middle/High School Assistant Principal
A warm Raider welcome to Mr. McArdle!
Assistant Middle/High School Principal Mr. McArdle has been busy in his first few days on the job meeting and talking with students and staff.
We caught up with him to ask how his day went.
"The first day has been exciting and I am so appreciative of the kind welcome by our Raiders today!"
Click on the photos to view them full size
Cal-Mum Bus Driver Jim McManus Presented with NYS Senate Liberty Award
Quickly, Mr. McManus maneuvered his bus off the road and into a ditch to avoid the head on collision. Due to his quick thinking and brave actions, there were no serious injuries associated with this accident. Mr. McManus remained in control and helped the students to remain calm until help arrived.
Senator Patrick Gallivan presented Mr. McManus with the Liberty Award for his actions that day.
The Liberty Medal is one of the highest civilian honors that a New York resident can receive and is awarded to individuals who have merited special commendation for exceptional, heroic, or humanitarian acts and achievements on behalf of their fellow New Yorkers. Senator Gallivan represents the 59th Senate District which includes Caledonia.
Fourth Grade Black History Research Projects
Some of the people that they researched include Fred Jones, Thurgood Marshall, Louis Armstrong, and Harriet Tubman.
The students gathered information about the person they were researching and then put it into a digital format, which they presented to their classmates.
Here are some photos of the students' presentations of notable African Americans.
Click on the photos to view them full size
Research Project by Katelyn Wiley
Research Project by Lyla Hillman
Research Project by Braelyn Swain
Meet Mrs. Warner - Cal-Mum's Attendance Officer and Bus Dispatcher
Welcome to the Raider family Mrs. Warner!
Elementary School Student Council Interactive Black History Month Display
The Cal-Mum Elementary School Student Council created an interactive display focusing on the lives and accomplishments of Black Americans.
Elementary students visited the interactive display all month long. They used their mobile devices to click on the QR code which then brought them to websites about each individual pictured in the display.
Click on the photos to view them full size
Point - Click - Learn
Learning is more fun with friends
Who shall we learn about next?
Two Cal-Mum Juniors Invited to Perform in the Nazareth College 2022 Honor Band
Juniors Elliot Dietrich and Thomas Murdock were among 73 high school instrumentalists from upstate New York that were selected to perform in Nazareth College’s 2022 Honor Band.
This was the first time the college hosted the Honor Band.
Tommy called the concert, "A great experience."
"It was really awesome playing with the big band and with people who were good at the instruments they play. The concert hall was amazing and the big sound of the band itself was something I've never experienced before," he commented.
Elliot, who plays alto saxophone, and Tommy, who plays trombone, have been playing their instruments since elementary school.
The performance took place on February 11, 2022, at the Nazareth College School of Music’s Beston Hall. Dr. Jared Chase, a member of Nazareth College School of Music Faculty, conducted the performance.
On February 12, the high school students took part in rehearsals with Dr. Chase, masterclasses with Nazareth faculty, a concert with the Nazareth College Wind Symphony and Rochester Music Educators Wind Ensemble, on-campus food, and a performance in state of the art Beston Hall.
The Nazareth College Honor Band performed Americans We by Henry Fillmore, Magnolia Star by Steve Danyew, Sheltering Sky by John Mackey, and Ghost Apparatus by David Biedenbender.
Cal-Mum Transportation Department Receives Excellence in Student Services Award
Superintendent of Schools Robert Molisani presented Transportation Director Mr. Ronald Otto with the award at a recent training session with all of the drivers present.
The dedication of the Transportation Department's employees made it possible for CMCS to reopen for student in-person learning in September 2020 in the midst of the Covid pandemic.
Congratulations to the Cal-Mum Transportation Department!
Cal-Mum Varsity Cheerleaders' Resiliency Results in Four First Place Wins
January brought some challenges to the Cal-Mum Competitive Cheerleading team. Injury and illness sidelined several of the cheerleaders and made the first couple of competitions a challenge for the Raiders. Coach Michelle Carson says their determination and resiliency kicked in and from then on, the Cal-Mum Competitive Cheer Team has been coming home with first place wins.
Cal-Mum’s Varsity and Mod A teams won their first competitions on January 29, 2022, at the Attica Competition and haven't looked back since. The girls continued their winning streak at the Arkport-Canaseraga on February 5 and Greece Arcadia Competitions on February 12.
On Thursday, February 17, the girls not only won the LCAA Div. 3 competition but had the third-highest score of the competition. On Saturday, February 26 the teams travel to Avon for the Class 2 Small Section V Cheerleading Sectionals.
“Several members of this team have been cheering together for a long time. They have been involved in our CMYF program, attended CM Youth Cheer camp, and our after-school tumbling program. As a coach, it's fun to look back and remember their young performances and their excitement when they first got their tumbling skills. About half of this team have only a few years of experience. They have worked very hard this season to increase their skills and match our veteran cheerleaders' level of expertise,” said Varsity Coach Michelle Carson, who has been coaching CM Cheerleaders since 1993.
Coach Carson's daughter Angela Carson coaches the modified team; her youngest daughter MacKenna Carson volunteers to help the team with tumbling and stunting. Former CM cheerleader Sami Bulter also volunteers throughout the year as her schedule permits.
Competitive Cheer is a sanctioned sport under the New York State Public High School Athletic Association or NYSPHSAA. It is different from sideline cheering at games. Cheer teams compete with a 2.5 minute routine based on requirements set by NYS. Requirements include stunts, pyramids, tumbling, jumps, dance, and a crowd engaging cheer. Stunts, pyramids, and tumbling difficulty are scored based on a rubric created by NYS.
“In April 2014, the NYS Board of Regents voted to make cheerleading a sport here in NY. NYS was the 35th state to recognize cheerleading as a sport. We have to attend a minimum of three and a maximum of 12 competitions per season.
It has not been an easy transition but it has been worth it. Having the girls recognized as athletes and eligible for the NYS Scholar Athlete award has made all of the growing pains and rule change headaches worth it. I wouldn't say we are to the point where everyone considers cheerleading athletes equal to all other athletes but we're getting there,” Coach Carson said.
Middle School Play - Murder on the 518
The play contained all the elements necessary for great entertainment - an apparent murder, mystery, intrigue, and plenty of humor! Murder on the 518 kept the audience on the edge of their seats!
Middle School English teacher Mrs. Schoff directed the play, assisted by Mrs. Bickdord and student director Will Dietrich. Mr. Toyama returned to handle the lights and sounds.
Mrs. Schoff's Gryffindors are the Winners
Their contributions to class discussions, ability to remember their independent reading books, Kahoot wins, and growth in iReady pushed their points to amazing levels. They have celebrated, but now it's off to another ten weeks. Who will the winner be?
Down on the Kindergarten Farm
The kindergarten teachers concluded the unit by taking the students on a virtual field trip using Nepris, a program that connects industry experts with teachers and students. Nepris offers a video library of thousands of recordings of a daily practices in a real-world business, including agriculture.
Cal-Mum High School English Teacher Paul Meloon a Published Playwright
Mr. Paul Meloon’s 2021 Caledonia-Mumford High School senior play “The Mysterious Case of the Mysterious Case” has been accepted for publication by Pioneer Drama, Englewood, Colorado. The play features Dadd solving a mystery with a script filled with “dad jokes” (creative puns or turn of phrase jokes for a chuckle or a groan).
When the play had its world premiere at Cal-Mum in April 2021 (with the full title “Detective Dadd and the Mysterious Case of the Mysterious Case”) it starred Rowan Nothnagle as Detective Hugo Dadd, as well as Katelyn Zehler, Abigail Richter, Emma Efing, MacKenzie Stetzenmeyer, Tyler Brabant, Carly Cohen, Emma Perry, Elyse Fuller, Liviya Kiriyak, Sebastian Kresge, Angelina Swartzenberg, and Nathan Howard.
Mr. Meloon has directed Cal-Mum’s senior plays for the past seventeen years and has penned them for the past six years. The play is currently featured under new releases on Pioneer Drama’s website and there is also a school listed that has performed the play.
Before education, Mr. Meloon worked in Rochester writing and producing advertisements for radio, and more recently has appeared in Batavia Players productions (mostly Shakespeare plays) and credits both of these experiences in helping him write “The Mysterious Case” and having it accepted for publication. Of course, being a dad who enjoys “dad jokes” also helps.
This past year’s senior play “Holly Day’s Homecoming” (the best senior play of this academic year) has been sent out for publication as well and hopefully will be accepted.
Next year’s senior play has already been written and will premiere at Cal-Mum this coming November 2022. Don't miss it!
Valentines for Senior Citizens and Veterans
Elementary School students made Valentine’s Day cards for senior citizens in the area.
Assemblywoman Marjorie Byrnes collected them and distributed the cards to seniors at the congregate meal locations in the county.
She said many senior citizens had a smile on their faces when they received their valentine.
The Elementary School Student Council also made valentines for veterans in our community.
Mrs. McMullen's First Graders Celebrate the 100th Day of School and Valentine's Day
We filled our fun containers with valentines from our friends
We Made it to 100 Days of Learning!
If I have 10 conversation hearts and I eat five, how many do I have left?
Mr. Toy's Environmental Science Class Takes the Lab Outdoors
Mr. Toy’s Environmental Science students participated in a multidisciplinary lesson last week.
The class snowshoed around the campus, stopping to investigate and document the many different species of trees.
The students really enjoyed the outdoor science lab and found snowshoeing to be a physically challenging but enjoyable exercise .
Middle and High School Math Teams Have Great Success
Great success for Cal-Mum's Middle and High School Math teams!
Congratulations to the Cal-Mum Middle School Math Team, the 2022 regional champions! Team members are Selah Ader, Ezekiel Bulkley, Tabitha Cole, Jonathan Gnanaraj, Sean McNear, James Patanella, Aaron Blaker, Hannah Harmon, Laura Renolds, Julia Wasilco, and Jacob Wiley.
Julia Wasilco is the top scorer for eighth grade and Sean McNear is the top scorer for seventh grade.
Middle School Math teacher Mrs. Geary is the team advisor and coach.
The Cal-Mum High School Math Team also successfully competed regionally.
Team members are Cassidy Mitchell, Taylor Mills, Kaelyn Jake, Hazell Nickerson, Mya Rodger, Camella Roberts, Elliot Dietrich, Leilani Monegro, Kelsey Curtis and Bernie Bazzett.
Congratulations to Bernie, Taylor and Cassidy who scored in the top 15 for their division and qualified to compete in the NYS Math Competition on April 2, 2022.
High School Math teacher Miss Pope is the team advisor and coach.
Click on the photos to view them full size
Cal-Mum Middle School Math team is the 2022 regional champions!
Cassidy, Taylor and Bernie are high scorers and qualified for state math competition
Senior Kyle Wade Added to the 1,000 Point Club
Congratulations to Senior Kyle Wade!
On December 30, 2022, Senior Kyle Wade scored 30 points against York to become the 6th boys' basketball player in Cal-Mum school history to eclipse the 1,000th point mark.
Kyle is a relentless worker on and off the court and has grown as a leader among his teammates. Kyle has left his mark on the basketball program by being part of 75 varsity wins and two sectional championships.
His current point total is 1,264 and climbing!
Kyle is the son of Don and Patty Wade.
Congratulations Coach Dan Dickens - Section Five Class C3 Basketball Coach of the Year
Learning Life-Saving Community CPR in Health Class
A snow day for pre-k students doesn't mean a day off from school - it means bring your snow clothes to school so you can play outside!
Middle School Students Explore the Campus
The snowy winter has provided some wonderful opportunities for our students to explore the outdoor classroom that exists on our beautiful campus.
Fifth Graders in Poetry Workshop with Sherry Robbins
Her visits to the fourth and fifth grade were put on hold for the past couple of years due to the pandemic but we are so happy that Mrs. Robbins returned this school year.
She introduced the fifth-grade students to popular author Billy Collins and his poem entitled, On Turning 10.
The students wrote their own poems about growing up. They really enjoyed the workshop and wrote some interesting recollections about their young lives.
Olivia Kantowski titled her poem, Then and Now, which spoke about one of her imaginative times at home when she built a blanket fort on her bed. She fell off and broke her collar bone! Thankfully, Olivia can write about it with laughter. She was also inspired to paint a picture for her teacher, Mrs. Harmon.